The Puredistance Perfume Lounge in Vienna, from Puredistance.com
To a real perfume connoisseur, price is no object. That doesn’t mean that we are willing to pay exorbitant amounts of money for the newest, finest and most exclusive fragrances in the world; it means that we can appreciate even the humblest drugstore scent or be critical of something that’s overpriced and over-hyped by a splashy ad campaign. We just want to experience good perfume, wherever it is found. That being said, when I smelled Puredistance I (2008) for the first time I did feel a little stab of envy that something so lovely would never be mine because of its price. I knew that trying a sample of it was taking that risk, but I am glad to have done it. It is like no other perfume in the world.
This perfume was seven years in the making and was originally the personal fragrance of its creator, perfumer Annie Buzantian. The company’s headquarters and store, or should I say “perfume lounge” are located in Vienna, Austria and the fragrance is sold only there and at a few select shops in Europe, including Swarovski Crystal, maker of the elegant yet simple containers for the perfume. The perfume is sold in the customer’s choice of a crystal and gold or crystal and steel flacon, with either traditional clear crystal or the striking black version. The gold one will set you back 2,750 Euros, about $4,000 USD at current exchange rates. Before you faint, be advised that the refill vial is only 165 Euros, about $240 USD. If you can’t make it to Europe, you can purchase the perfume online from the Puredistance web site. (I hope they will sell the refill by itself without making the buyer shell out for the crystal casing the first time around. Some companies will only sell you a refill bottle if you bought the regular one first.) UPDATE: The Puredistance company has confirmed that the refill version may be purchased by itself, as they want as many people as possible to experience the fragrance.
Puredistance I is nominally a floral/ozonic fragrance, but it is so seamless that it’s nearly impossible to separate the notes from each other. The top notes are said to be ozone, cassis, neroli Bigarade (bitter orange) and tangerine flower, and yes, I can smell that hazy brightness that marks a citrus white floral of that style, yet it is without any animalic character or over-the-top sweetness. Heart notes are magnolia, rose wardia, jasmine, parmenthia (I have no idea what that is either, so don’t feel bad) and mimosa, and I can smell the hallmarks of these florals, yet they are as one, streamlined and abstracted and light as air yet unfading as the scent develops due to being intertwined with synthetic aqueous accords. The unobtrusive base notes are there to keep it anchored, but if I were not told what they were I couldn’t even guess, and I would be surprised when I did discover the secret. I might venture to say it had white musk, which it does; I would not even think of amber or vetiver, but that’s part of it too. I found that this fragrance develops only to a certain point and then hangs in suspended animation, at least on my skin, never really getting to a true drydown. The ozonic and other synthetic components seem to have a cooling effect over the entire composition, so the amber’s warmth never completely emerges. Its development is like a Möbius strip, with elements emerging, receding, and then reasserting themselves just when you thought they were gone.
Although this fragrance is truly unique, its structure is related to the original abstract floral, Chanel No. 5, which I have never warmed to because I can’t get past the powder overdose, not being a fan of most powdery perfumes. Puredistance I is somewhat like Chanel No. 5 with just the faintest ghost of powder; both contain a good dose of neroli in the opening, jasmine in the heart and vetiver in the base. If the Chanel smelled like this I would have been wearing it a long time ago. I don’t usually care much for ozonic scents either, but in this fragrance it’s not overdone as it almost always is in less well done compositions, when it’s supposed to smell like the ocean but usually fails miserably, ending up harsh and metallic. Not in this perfume – it’s what ties everything together, a cool, columnar scent that matches the gorgeous bottle. Lasting power is very good for a floral blend with not much of a base.
Is it overpriced? Of course it is, but it’s selling, so someone thinks it’s worth it. Does it have an ad campaign calculated for maximum snob appeal and the illusion of scarcity? Oh, yes, in spades. You can even buy a book telling its “story” on the web site, if you have any money left over from your fragrance purchase. For the rest of us, there is a free downloadable PDF version if we really want to spend our time with eighty pages of loving prose dedicated to one fragrance. Never mind all the press and hype though, as it’s a truly pretty perfume. I will save the rest of my sample for the next time I need to smell rich and sophisticated, and I can be fairly certain that I will be the only woman in the room wearing it.
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